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Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
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Hi Terrie,

I think all that's true in some respects.  Front end can be valuable, particularly with respect to identifying a visitor knowledge base.  One thing I've noticed, however, is that most topics can be of interest to visitors, that is they're receptive.  Admittedly, I haven't tried evolutionary theory at the Creation Museum, but short of that people I've run into are pretty damn receptive.  This causes me to reflect on a quote from Steve Jobs, “It’s really hard to design products by focus groups. A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.” – Businessweek, 1998.  And that's proven true in so many ways.  Innovation is about craziness and outside the box.  Evaluation is not about that:  It's about mainstreaming.  Ditto for Education.

Outside the box: I think of the Exploratorium in its early days,  I think about "Who Done It," I think about the Ontario Science Center and "Phenomena," I think about "Bodies, "  I think about Maker's Faire, The American Visionary Art Museum, the City Museum of St. Louis, Tom Tits, "A Question of Truth," the museum of Jurassic Technology and myriad other events, exhibits, museums.  Front end, formative, all useless and inconsequential, perhaps ultimately detrimental.

In many ways the science museum community has wandered down a road to evaluative nowheresville, a not keepable promise.  All well intentioned and supportive but not thought through, disconnected from the reality of the events.  Great exhibits are about the human social reality.

C


On Oct 27, 2011, at 6:33 PM, Terrie Nolinske wrote:

> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
> *****************************************************************************
> 
> As an educator and an evaluator, I've been involved in front end, formative
> and summative exhibition evaluation. I have always used evaluation to
> 'inform' the creative process, not stifle or control it. Front end
> evaluation is invaluable to test concepts, storylines and prototypes of
> graphics and exhibit interactives. Formative evaluation gathers information
> to inform change, while summative evaluation informs changes in learning,
> behaviors and attitudes.
> 
> Terrie
> 
> Terrie Nolinske, Ph.D.
> Principal
> TNI Consultants LLC
> 
> A Woman Business Enterprise
> 
> Phone: 813. 973. 2102
> Email: [log in to unmask]
> URL: www.tniconsultants.com
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Informal Science Education Network
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Jeff Rosenblatt
> Sent: Tuesday, October 25, 2011 7:18 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Exhibit evaluation in Dimensions magazine
> 
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
> ****************************************************************************
> *
> 

The opinions and thoughts expressed here are my own and should in no way be construed or attributed to the Exploratorium or related organization, and do not represent an institutional position.
Charles Carlson
Senior Scientist
exploratorium
3601 Lyon St.
San Francisco, CA 94123
[log in to unmask]
Tel:   415-561-0319
Fax:  415-561-0370
http://blogs.exploratorium.edu/whyintercept/









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